Questions on whether or not sperm or egg donors could be liable to pay child support have been raised since a US judge ruled that a man must pay child support for the child of a lesbian couple who he donated sperm to, after they split up.

A Kansas judge recently ordered William Marotta, a sperm donor to a lesbian couple, to pay child support after they split up, raising questions of how the law protects sperm donors, reports Yahoo.

Mr Marotta and the couple he donated to did not use official channels, and instead met up using the website Craigslist, and they wrote up their own agreement.

Because the US state of Kansas did not have a legal way for same-sex couples to marry, when the couple split up, the Kansas Department of Children and Families sought out the biological father of the child for child support.

The department said that laws protecting sperm donors only if they follow state laws, such as using a registered doctor, and filling in the appropriate forms, which would normally exempt sperm donors from owing child support.

Laws in the state of New Jersey are similar to those in Kansas, said Bari Weinberger, a leading family law attorney, and managing partner of Weinberger Law Group.

He said that a judge could rule that any agreement made between a couple and a donor is null and void, unless they use official channels, and follow the appropriate laws.

He said: “In Kansas, as in New Jersey, sperm donation laws state that when artificial insemination takes place under the supervision of a licensed physician with semen donated from a man who is not the woman’s husband, the husband is treated as the child’s natural father under the law.

“The husband (and wife) both must consent to the procedure in writing which is then validated by the administering physician,” Weinberger explained, referring New Jersey Law.

Mr Weinberger went on to say that he beleived the case of Mr Marotta, could possibly highlight a grey area in the law, which needed to be updated.

He said: “New Jersey [sperm donor and artificial insemination] statute discusses husband and wife specifically, and is outdated. New Jersey now recognizes civil unions and many states are now recognizing same sex marriages, so perhaps this issue is ripe for litigation or legislative updating,”

Some states, including New Jersey, recognised “psychological parents”, such as the step-parent of a child, who could be liable to pay child support as the result of a couple breaking up.

Mr Weinberger said that these definitions, and the liability of people in relationships with children in their care to pay child support, needed to be updated and clearly laid out.

“I can’t thank you ladies enough for granting me the opportunity to donate my eggs. The joy of knowing that someone out there is happy cause of me brings nothing but happiness to my heart.

I am glad to have donated through Nurture, and I’m happy to have met such a bunch of wonderful ladies. Mel, Lee and Gerida you guys are the best and I wish you all the best of luck in your future endeavours.

Tertia, thank you so much. I am so honoured to have worked with your team. Sadly, this is my last donation. I pray for nothing but blessings upon your lives and those who wish to work with you. A big thumbs up.”
🙂

“It has been three years since we last spoke and I wanted to thank all of you for the very special work you do.

I was unfortunately unable to complete the donation process and I really hope the couple I would have donated to found another donor and successfully conceived but I was so moved by my dealings with all of you I thought I would send you a quick mail.

A few years ago my husband and I decided to start trying for a baby and we conceived immediately. We are very blessed by our beautiful young son.

Keep up the good work and know that your kind approach to your work really touches so many.”

Millions of human embryos created for IVF pregnancies have been thrown away unused, figures have revealed.

They show that for every woman who conceives a child through in vitro fertilisation, 15 embryos are made, and almost half of them are discarded during or after the process.

More than 1.7 million embryos prepared with the aim of helping women become pregnant have been thrown away since records began 21 years ago, according to the new breakdown.

The scale of rejection of human embryos was made public in response to questions from peers about the level of waste generated in hospitals and fertility clinics.

Crossbench peer Lord Alton said embryos were being created and thrown away in ‘industrial’ numbers. He added: ‘It happens on a day-by-day basis with casual indifference.

‘My understanding is that you can carry out fertility treatments these days without creating large numbers of embryos to destroy them. That is where technology needs to move.’

The figures on the use of human embryos were gathered by the fertility industry regulator, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), which has recorded IVF processes since 1991.

Embryos are created from female eggs and male sperm during the IVF process. Some are then introduced into the womb of the prospective mother. Others, however, are put into storage, discarded as unwanted, or, in some cases, used in scientific experiments.

The figures released by Health Minister Lord Howe show that 3,546,818 human embryos have been created since August 1991. These have produced only 235,480 ‘gestational sacs’ – evidence of successful implantation.

As a result, 93 per cent of all embryos created – more than 3.3 million in all – are never used to generate a pregnancy. Of the embryos created, 839,325 were put into storage for future use and 2,071 were stored for donation to others. A further 5,876 were set aside for scientific research.

In all, 1,388,443 embryos were implanted in the hope of beginning pregnancies. Just under one in six resulted in a pregnancy. Of the rest, 1,691,090 were discarded unused and a further 23,480 were discarded after being taken out of storage.

The figures do not show how many of the successful implants resulted in pregnancies that went to term. Lord Alton said: ‘This sheer destruction of human embryos – most people would not know that it took place on such a scale.

‘Most people wouldn’t have any idea about the numbers of embryos being created in that process and would also feel very uneasy about them being experimented on as well.’ The HFEA said that one in 50 babies in Britain were now born through IVF treatment.

A spokesman said: ‘Over the 20 years since the HFEA was established, more than half a million people have had IVF treatment and around 200,000 babies have been born to couples who would not otherwise been able to have a family.
‘IVF involves the creation of more embryos than are transferred to the patient so that the best ones can be chosen to start pregnancy.

‘Those embryos that are discarded may no longer be needed by the individual or couple for treatment.

‘In these circumstances they can decide whether to donate the embryos to a research project, another couple or ask the clinic to destroy them.’
Embryos used for research purposes can be used only in projects regulated by the HFEA. The embryos are used to study infertility, miscarriage, embryo abnormalities or serious disease.

Couples usually pay £4,000 or more for a single IVF treatment, although costs can rise through repeated procedures in attempts to achieve a pregnancy.
Lord Howe said in a reply to Lord Alton’s written question that the fertility regulator ‘does not hold data in relation to embryos experimented upon’.
He added that it was for the HFEA to decide what information it should collect. Lord Alton said this ‘defies any kind of logic’.

“Words cannot express my gratitude for your most amazing organisation.
Tomorrow my donor is going in for egg retrieval. I’m crying as I type this
and don’t even have the words to express myself. I pray that we have a positive result.

May the Almighty bless you, your family and your incredible Nurture team!”